Saying Sorry
by RoxxiSanders
Summary: What really did happen after Martha blew the candle out in ‘The Shakespeare Code’? The Doctor felt guilty, Martha felt worthless and the Carrionites wanted to have a little fun and would use anyone to get it. Ten/Martha friendship safe for Rose fans


**DISCLAIMER: **Sadly I own nothing, no matter how much I want to own the wonderful David Tennant.

**SUMMARY: **What really did happen after the Doctor hurt Martha, comparing her to Rose in the episode 'The Shakespeare Code'? The Doctor felt guilty, Martha felt worthless and the Carrionites wanted to have a little fun and would use anyone to get it." A Ten/Martha story.

**A/N:** This is my take on what should have happened after Martha blew that candle out in 'The Shakespeare Code' and how the episode could have finished.

**TITLE: **Saying Sorry

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"_**There's something I'm missing, Martha.**__** Something really close, staring me right in the face and I can't see it. Rose would know. A friend of mine, Rose, right now she'd say exactly the right thing. Still, can't be helped. You're a novice. Take you back home tomorrow." **_He hadn't realised that what he was saying had hurt her, hadn't realised that once again he was comparing her to Rose Tyler.

"**Great." **She had been hurt; she'd been compared to Rose again and every time it hurt that little bit more. Why couldn't he accept that she wasn't Rose? She was a completely different person but she still had feelings.

He had flipped over to lie on his back again and she had forcefully blown out the candle then rolled onto her side, her back facing him.

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They lay in an awkward silence, both of them still awake but remaining silent. He stared intently at the ceiling, not able to see anything but not willing to go to sleep. It was his duty to protect Martha, even if she quite clearly wasn't talking to him and he wasn't going to let anything happen to her. Ten minutes later, he got sick of the silence and quietly spoke. "Martha?" She said nothing but he could tell she was still awake because she tensed when he said her name. "Martha come on…are you ignoring me?" Again she said nothing. "Oh I see, you are ignoring me."

She abruptly sat up and swung her legs over the side of the bed then stood up but still didn't say anything to him. "Where are you goin'?" He questioned her, concerned. She may not have been Rose but that still didn't mean he wanted her wandering off and getting into trouble. He wasn't surprised when she didn't answer him but he was surprised when she turned around and left the room.

He lied back down, thinking that it was all a plan to make him feel guilty but he wasn't going to fall for it, after all, he'd done nothing wrong.

She walked down the corridor and went into the bathroom, well the poor substitute of a bathroom. She looked at her reflection in the small mirror which hung on the wall and sighed. She'd never be the blonde haired, blue eyed girl that he wanted. She normally didn't get so stressed out over guys but from the second she saw him, she had fallen for him; shame he didn't feel the same way about her. She took one last look at her reflection then turned and walked out into the corridor again. It was dark and she had a job to see where she was going so when she felt something tug at her wrist, she thought it was the Doctor. "I've already told you, I don't wanna talk to you."

"Why the lady doth protest too much." She tensed as she realised that it wasn't the Doctor that was clutching at her wrist at all.

"Ah get off me." The grip tightened and she winced in pain. "Please let go, you're hurting me."

"Now, now my dark lady, lest you not be testy." The voice was cold and creepy as it whispered in her ear and she recognised the smell which emerged as he spoke.

Her eyes widened in horror as she realised that he must have somehow been possessed. "William? What happened to you?"

He bitterly laughed and she tried to pull away from him but his hold was too strong. "Nothing happened to me, come on I have something to show you." He tugged on her arm but she stood firm, not willing to follow. "I said come on."

He pulled harder and she was forced to follow him but not before calling out for help, "Doctor! Help me!"

"I name you, Martha Jones." She started to feel dizzy and fell to the floor as her legs gave way underneath her. He laughed and picked her up, carrying her away in the dark.

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The Doctor leapt out of bed and raced out into the corridor, using his sonic screwdriver to light his way. "Martha? Martha, where are you?" He walked down the corridor, calling her name; terrified that he had lost her just like he had lost Rose. He wasn't going to be responsible for losing someone else, he had saved Donna and he would save Martha. "Martha?"

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She woke up to the smell of rotting flesh and turned her head to see a corpse hanging from a thick, wooden beam. She closed her eyes, trying to block the images out of her mind but knowing that she would never sleep without nightmares ever again. She wished that she hadn't gotten mad at him, wished so much that she hadn't stormed out. She could imagine the Doctor now, lying in bed and dreaming of Rose. She felt the tears slide down her face, hot and salty as they splashed onto the floor beside her. Her eyes snapped open as she heard a noise above her but when she saw the sight before her, she wished she hadn't opened them at all.

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He continued to walk the corridors, pointing his sonic screwdriver in front of him and listening to its rhythmical beat. He had to find her, her screams had terrified him and now, walking down the corridors of a Tudor style inn, he realised that although she wasn't Rose, she was still equally as important and he needed to find her. The beeping got faster as he approached the end of the corridor and pointed the screwdriver up to the ceiling. He looked up to find a latched door in the ceiling, guessing it led up to the attic, he jumped up and grabbed it then pulled the door down and stared at the ladder which appeared before him. He knew that there was only one way to go, he started up the ladder, praying that he would find Martha at the top.

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"W…w…what do you want with me?" Martha never showed that she was scared…well, hardly ever showed her fear but the sight before her terrified her. She stared at the witch like figure in horror as two more appeared behind it.

"Now, now all in good time, we want to play a little game first." The first one smirked at her and it took all of Martha's strength not to lean to the side and retch. The smell was even worse than Shakespeare's breath and that had to be saying something.

"Yes, where is your little Doctor friend?" The second one questioned, her eyes cold and evil.

"Like I'd tell you, if you lay one finger on him…" The third one put a hand on her face and the feel of it's cold, wrinkled hand made her want to throw up.

"Oh you picked a feisty one." She whimpered and twisted her head to the side in an attempt to get away from the creature before her.

"Let go of me. Please leave me alone." She begged and pleaded with them but they just cackled and bitterly laughed in her face. She didn't know what the Doctor was doing but she prayed to God that he had noticed she was missing.

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He finally reached the top of the ladder and entered the attic. He was almost certain that they were in here, the smell alone made their presence quite clear. "Martha, you up here?"

She rolled onto her side, wishing that the voice in her head was real and the Doctor was coming to her rescue.

One of the Carrionites grabbed her wrist and pulled her up off the floor and she yelped in pain as it twisted her arm. "Come on, we are just going to have a little fun first, well, when your Doctor gets here."

"I don't know where he is but he isn't gonna come for me, he doesn't wanna know." She looked up at them dejectedly as they smirked and cackled at her yet again.

She was about to fight back when a voice stopped her. "I would not bother my midnight angel, they are too powerful. They have a hold on me and I cannot fight it off." She looked over to the corner to fine William huddled against the wall, trying to break free from the feelings which had been inflicted upon him.

"William…" She looked at him helplessly then looked at one of the Carrionites, "What have you done to him?"

"We are just borrowing him for a while Miss Jones. If your Doctor will not come for you then maybe he will change his mind when he realises who else we have for him." It looked out of the small window then back at the other two Carrionites. "The moon is almost in alignment, we need him soon…before it is too late."

"Too late for what?" It shoved her against the wall and she banged her head on the wood.

"Never you mind." It walked over to the window and looked out again.

"Leave them alone, it's me you want but then again, who doesn't?" Martha's head snapped up and she smiled as she saw him.

"Doctor, thank God you're here." He walked over to her and held his hand out, she took it and he helped her to her feet.

"They've done something to him, to Shakespeare, he keeps acting weird." She muttered to him, being quiet so that they couldn't hear her.

"What have they done?" He muttered back to her, needing to find out just what they had done so that he could set about trying to fix it.

"I don't know but he named me before and I…I don't know. I just sort of, woke up here." She looked at him, confused and scared.

"Don't worry, I can fix this." He looked her in the eyes but she couldn't read them, he was masking his emotions, just like he always did.

"Fine but you're still not off the hook." He looked at her and rolled his eyes then turned around and was greeted by the sight of three, witch-like creatures and William, who was still huddled in the corner.

"So nice of you to join us, Doctor."

"I know, now the party can really get started but I do have to ask…what do you want with me?" The Carrionites smirked at him and he politely smiled back. "Well…?"

"In about ten minutes the moon will align itself perfectly to the earth and we will become completely invincible but to do that, we need the power of a time-lord."

The Doctor laughed and Martha looked at him, confused as to what was quite so funny about the situation. "Well you've gone and ruined it now by telling me what you want from me." He laughed again and Martha raised her eyebrows.

"What's so funny? They're about to kill us and you stand here and laugh." Her voice went slightly higher and he could see that she was terrified.

"Well now I know the plan and I'm hardly going to let you go ahead with it, am I?"

It plucked out a doll from its pocket and held it up. "See I think you will my good Doctor." She grabbed a pin and stuck it into the dolls heart. The doctor doubled over in pain and fell to the floor. Martha also fell to her knees and knelt beside him.

"Doctor? Doctor?" She pleaded with him to open his eyes and look at her.

When he did open them, he silently beckoned her to lean down so he could whisper in her ear. She did so and he weakly whispered to her. "I have two remember?" She nodded and he continued. "Well only one of them is working, how do you people cope?" He gasped and she smiled at him sympathetically but quickly put her ear near to his lips. "I need you to name them, like I did yesterday. If you name them at least it'll buy us some more time." She pulled back and nodded then stood up as the Doctor continued to gasp for breath.

"By the power of…something to do with stars, maybe…creatures I name you, Evil beings!" Nothing happened and she looked back at the Doctor as he mouthed the word 'Carrionites' to her. "I name you…Car…Carrio…I can't tell what you're saying." She looked at him helplessly and then back at the Carrionites. She knelt down next to him again as the witches cackled. "What do I do?"

"Start my other heart." He gasped and she placed her hands on his chest, ready to start compressions. "Not like that, help me up and hit me." She helped him to his knees and he leant over as she thumped his back, just below his neck. "Ah, not there, lower down." She mumbled a 'sorry' to him and then thumped him again. He gasped and coughed but then looked up at her. "You did it!"

"Oh don't sound so surprised!" She glared at him and he simply smiled and got to his feet. She also stood up and one of the Carrionites walked over to them.

It grabbed Martha and pulled her back against it's chest. She screamed and the Doctor glared at it. "Let go of her." He remained surprisingly calm and Martha looked at him, pleading for his help. "Just let her go, this is nothing to do with her; it's me you want."

They cackled again as one of the others walked towards him and breathed in his face, the smell making him internally gag. "Yes but we know that the way to get to you is through her."

He raised an eyebrow at them and laughed again. "She's on her first trip with me, we hardly know each other."

Martha's stomach was twisting in knots and she was starting to feel sick. She mouthed the words 'help me' to the Doctor and he gave a brief and subtle nod in her direction.

"She's of no importance to you, just let her go; we already know it's me you want." The Carrionite holding Martha tightened its grip and Martha heaved, trying her hardest not to throw up. "Would you just stop that? You don't impress anyone; you just look a bit power-crazed. Let her go, she's innocent in all this."

"Why would we want to do that Doctor? If she's of no importance to you then you won't mind if we just dispose of her now." Martha tensed as it shuffled over to the window, dragging her along with it.

"Well no, I suppose not but you wouldn't do that because if you did then I'd have to try and save her and so you'd end up wasting time and then the moon wouldn't be aligned to whatever it was you said before and…"

"Enough! Get rid of her." The Carrionite stood in front of the Doctor and told the other two to dispose of her, the sooner she was gone, the sooner they could get on with the deed which needed to be done.

"No! No, look just let her go and you can have me." It smirked at him and he glared at it before softening his voice and looking at the floor. "I can't let her die; I can't lose another one."

"Ah yes, whatever did actually happen to the wonderful Rose, Doctor?" It snarled and the Doctor looked up, anger in his eyes.

"Don't bring her into this." He glared at the Carrionite then looked over at Martha, he could see the terror in her eyes and he thought back to a time when it had been Rose that he'd been saying goodbye to. He couldn't stand by and watch her die. "Her name keeps me fighting so if you're trying to make me give up, it won't work. Just let Martha go, she's done nothing to you…she means nothing to you."

"And just what does she mean to you, Doctor?"

"I've already told you, she doesn't really mean anything…"

"Good, get rid of her." It interrupted and the Doctor stepped back, intending to find a way past it.

"No! I hadn't finished my sentence. You know it's rude to interrupt and you're not even ginger so you have absolutely no…"

"Doctor! A little help here!" Martha interrupted his train of thought, knowing that once he started to ramble it was hard shutting him up.

"Right, sorry. I was saying, I hardly know her so I can't really say what she means to me but I do know that she's all I really have and…and I can't let her die." Martha looked at him, shocked by his soft and gently tone. "If you want me then fine, take me but let her go."

The Carrionite shook its head. "But Doctor this game is much more fun." He shoved past it and ran over to Martha, glaring at the Carrionite which held her as he shouted, "By the power of the fourteen stars of the 'Rexel planetary configuration', I name you…Carrionite!"

Nothing happened. "The power of a name only works once dear Doctor." It cackled but missed William standing up in the corner of the room.

"Evil darkness, darkness and despair, release from the power, the good and the fair! Evil with which, my eyes shall not see, entrap these vile creatures, never to set them free!" The Carrionite which was holding Martha released its grip and shoved her into the Doctor. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and held her to his chest tightly, shielding her from the whirlwind which was starting to encompass the room. The Carrionites screamed and Martha wrapped her arms around the Doctor's waist, clinging to him for dear life. "Love's Labour's not lost but nor is it won, a play meant for the darkness, never the sun! For thine is the power but never the glory, and now ye shall die at the end of my story! You have been named Carrionites and so you shall die Carrionites!" The room was filled with shrieks as the flashes of light surrounded the witches and trapped them in their own ball of energy, taking every trace of 'Love's Labour's Won' with them.

They had planned to take over the script, to gain eternal power using a time-lord and a theatre full of people but their plan had been stopped. Martha looked up from the Doctor's chest and noticed the small, snow-globe like object which encompassed the Carrionites. "Is…is…it…is it over?" She whispered, afraid of the answer.

"Yes Martha, it's over." The Doctor breathed a sigh of relief, as did Martha. He gave her one final squeeze and pulled away from her. "You alright?"

"Yeah…yeah I'm ok." She nodded and he turned to look at William.

"Are you alright?" He nodded and the Doctor looked at him, amazed. "Wow, you did it; you saved us all."

"Maybe we are not so different after all, Doctor."

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She lay on the sofa in the TARDIS living room, staring at the TV set but not paying any attention. She had almost died today! She kept playing the scene over and over in her head.

"**Why would we want to do that Doctor? If she's of no importance to you then you won't mind if we just dispose of her now."**

"**Well no, I suppose not but you wouldn't do that because if you did then I'd have to try and save her and so you'd end up wasting time and then the moon wouldn't be aligned to whatever it was you said before and…" **

"**Enough! Get rid of her."**

He had been willing, even if it was only for a second, to let her go. She closed her eyes and sighed, he had told her that he would take her home in the morning; back to reality but what had happened today was real and it had scared the life out of her. When they had gotten back to the TARDIS he had shown her to the living room and gone to take a shower, still not apologising for what he had said to her back at the inn.

Eventually she had fallen asleep and the Doctor emerged from the bathroom. He had gone into his bedroom and gotten changed into a pair of pyjama pants and a t-shirt then walked into the living room

He suddenly felt a wave of guilt wash over him, it wasn't Martha's fault that he'd lost Rose. He walked over to her and looked down at her sleeping form, "I'm sorry, Martha." He lifted her into his arms and carried her into one of the guestrooms. He lay her down on the bed and tucked her in then turned and walked out of the guestroom and into his own bedroom. He climbed into bed and covered himself up, ready for a good night's sleep.

It was about an hour later that she woke up in a strange bed in an unfamiliar bedroom. She wiped the sweat off her forehead and willed her breathing to return to normal. When it finally did, she stood up and walked over to the window, she hadn't even noticed any windows in the TARDIS before, and looked out into the vast expanse which the Doctor called 'Space'. She crept out of the bedroom and tried to find her way back to the living room, needing to check that the Doctor was alright. He may not have cared about her but she cared about him and she knew that she wouldn't get any sleep until she put her mind at rest.

She stumbled down the hallway, in the dark, and eventually came to stop outside another bedroom door. She knew it was his; it had a small 'D' carved into the wood in the centre of the door. She gently knocked and when he didn't respond, she pushed the door open slightly. She quietly walked in, avoiding the mess on the floor. She could tell that the room belonged to the Doctor, his lamp had been left on and she could see that there were papers dotted around the desk and chair and various pairs of 'Converse All Stars' scattered around the room. There was also a picture on his bedside table, she didn't know what it was of but she guessed it was another planet. It had a burnt orange sky and bright red grass; she wasn't sure where it had been taken but it was beautiful. She looked at the man sleeping, he looked so different in sleep, there was no manic grin, no deep, all knowing eyes; just him. He looked so peaceful and she started having second thoughts about waking him up. He rolled over and mumbled something incoherent then fell silent again. "Doctor?" He didn't move. "Doctor?" This time it was a little more forceful and he rolled onto his back and opened his eyes, trying to focus them on the person above him.

"Huh? Martha?" He sounded confused and she couldn't help but think about how cute he looked, confused and sleep-mussed, his hair spiking up in all directions.

"Hey, sorry to wake you, I did knock but you didn't answer. I umm…I needed to see if you were ok."

He looked up at her bleary-eyed and then sat up. He rubbed at his eyes, clearing them, and then smiled at her. "I'm fine, why?"

"Oh I umm…well I had a nightmare and I just thought I'd better check on you but I can see that you're fine so I'll just be…"

He interrupted her rambling, not being able to keep up with her. "Martha I'm fine." She nodded but remained silent and he couldn't help but feel sorry for her; she looked so lost. "Do you wanna talk about it?" She looked at him warily and he patted the bed next to him. She sat down on the very edge and he laughed softly. "I don't bite you know."

She smiled and gave a small laugh of her own but quickly turned serious. "I dreamt that we were back in that inn but he didn't save us. He couldn't break free from them, the Carrionite let me go but she killed you. She…she stabbed you in the hearts, both of them and I couldn't save you in time because the other two grabbed me and tied me up. It…it all seemed so real, I just had to check you were still…" She trailed off, trying her hardest not to cry but failing as tears fell down her face.

"Martha, please don't cry; I'm absolutely fine. He did save us and you did save me." He looked away from her, unable to watch her cry. He could hear her sobbing as she apologised over and over again, eventually he couldn't stand it anymore and he leaned over and hugged her. "You have nothing to be sorry for Martha Jones, please stop crying."

He held her and about five minutes later she stopped and fell silent. "I'm so sorry."

"For what?" He sat dumbstruck, she had done nothing wrong but she was still apologising. If anything it should have been him apologising.

"For being so weak, I'm not usually like this." He squeezed her shoulders and she sighed.

He untangled himself from her before telling her something he knew she needed to hear. "Listen I…umm…I guess I owe you an apology. I shouldn't have compared you to Rose; I know you'll never be her. You're your own person, you're Martha Jones and you should be treated as equally as Rose was. She was so important to me and you aren't replacing her but I didn't have the right to talk to you like I did." He paused and looked at the duvet cover. "I guess I need to realise that you're still human, you have feelings too." He lowered his voice and she had to strain to hear him. "Anyway, I'm sorry."

She smiled to herself; it was quite obvious from his actions that he didn't do this whole 'apologising thing' very often. She looked at him, he was still staring down at the duvet cover, and she knew that she couldn't stay mad at him forever. "Apology accepted." He looked up at him, unasked questions in his eyes. "I forgive you and I'm sorry for overreacting."

"S'ok." He smiled at her and held his arms open to her again; she leant in to his embrace and sighed again. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing it's just…doesn't matter." She lost her courage and backed out of what she was going to say.

"Yeah it does; what were you going to say?" He urged her to continue, curious as to what she was going to say.

"Well I was just gonna ask if your trips are always this dangerous. I mean, my first trip and I almost get killed; it's…" She trailed off, not quite knowing what to say next.

"Umm, yeah they can be…well not all of them are…although I suppose you could say…"

She put him out of his misery by interrupting. "Relax, I get the point."

"Tell you what, because I nearly got you killed, how about we take another trip? Then you'll have had one into the past and one into the future and I'll have kept my promise."

She pulled away from him and smiled. "Yeah, ok then."

"Good, that's…that's great." He smiled back at her. "Well…I suppose you'll be wanting to get some more sleep so I'll umm, I'll stop talking now."

"Oh yeah…sleep…right…exactly. Good night Doctor."

"Good night Martha." She stood up and left the room, slightly disappointed that he hadn't offered to look after her. She walked back to the guestroom and got back into bed, rolling onto her side and closing her eyes.

About half an hour later she was still awake. She tensed slightly as she felt something slide into bed behind her but relaxed when he whispered in her ear. "I couldn't sleep, thought you might need the company." She smiled as he draped an arm around her waist and pulled her back against him.

"Thanks, for everything."

"It's alright, just don't get used to this…I don't do domestic." She rolled here eyes and snuggled back against him, just as she had wanted to do back at the inn. She didn't care that he didn't do domestic, she didn't care that he was an alien, she didn't even care when he finally fell asleep and softly snored in her ear because he was with her, Martha Jones, not Rose Tyler. He'd finally started to notice her and for now that would be good enough.

Before he fell asleep he reflected on the mad day they'd had. He didn't know exactly how much time he had left with Martha before he took her home but he did know that she wasn't Rose. She was Martha, Martha Jones and she had already saved him twice. He knew it was time to move on and maybe he could persuade Martha to be by his side while he did that.

He knew it wouldn't be easy as did she but together they could get through anything because they were Smith and Jones and they weren't quite ready to give up on each other yet.

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**A/N: **Well what did you think? Please don't be too brutal because I wasn't sure whether to post this or not until my best friend persuaded me to. I wrote it in the space of two days and it's my first adventure fic so…anyway let me know what ya think. Thanks.

"_That you were once unkind befriends me now,  
And for that sorrow, which I then did feel,  
Needs must I under my transgression bow,  
Unless my nerves were brass or hammered steel..."  
__William Shakespeare, Sonnet #120._


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